zoo news

11:51 am

Mon March 25, 2013

Meet Woodland Park Zoo's new triplet jaguar cubs

The three babies were born on Friday in what was the zoo’s first successful jaguar birth in nearly two decades.

The cubs are the first healthy offsprings of 14-year-old father Junior and 7-year-old mother Nayla, who gave birth to a stillborn cub in August. Because both Junior and Nayla were wild-born, they are thought to be an important part of jaguar reproduction worldwide.

Jaguar cubs weigh about 25 to 29 ounces at birth, according to zoo officials. They are born with their eyes closed, and their eyes begin to open when they are about 2 weeks old.

Nayla and her cubs will not be available for public viewing during the cubs’ first months. But the zoo said it would provide additional updates on its website.